


All the worms come up to breathe

by C Square (Emiko842)



Series: Coming up to breathe [3]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Anxiety, Asgore what were you thinking, Everyone is doing their best from where they are, Gen, In the same continuity as If thought is life and strength and breath, Multi, Post-Undertale Pacifist Route, Toriel is fucking pissed, but only vaguely, references to other characters - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-20
Updated: 2018-02-18
Packaged: 2018-10-08 08:28:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10382583
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emiko842/pseuds/C%20Square
Summary: The royal scientist is not what you expected.





	1. Chapter 1

The royal scientist is not what you expected.

For one, she’s completely incompetent (though maybe that should not be such a surprise considering who hired her.) Your first introduction, other than brief interaction waiting for your child at the barrier, is when she approaches your ex-husband and informs him that she managed to to actually Melt Monsters Together. If that was not enough grounds to be thrown in jail she hid the catastrophe for months, leaving the families with no information on what had happened to their loved ones.

Dreemurr’s response is to hug her. 

You’re so angry you can barely breath. The air hisses between your teeth as you pull it in in to interrupt whatever nonsense Asgore was saying with a curt “You’re fired.” 

You suppose you should let the families choose whether to press criminal charges but you still consider kicking your ex off the woman and throwing her at the guard. 

You would probably have been vaguely mollified by her pulling away from Asgore and looking at you in the eyes long enough to stammer “T-that’s fair.” if you were not so angry, and if Asgore did not straighten up frowning.

“Now, Tori- Toriel” he corrects quickly when you growl “I am the one who ordered the experiment, and I never did give any disciplinary warnings when the royal scientist stopped giving reports, if anything this is on me.” 

You ignore the lizzard’s stuttered “U-UM,” to direct an icy glare at Asgore.

“Very well. This will be added to the list of what you have to answer for then.” You can’t bare to stand here for another second with these people, so you leave. 

You have a child to apologize to. 

===

The second time you meet the royal scientist is when you come to inspect her lab. Migration to the surface has been stalled for a few weeks as things are figured out with the human officials. If Asgore really intends to move this disgraceful operation of a lab to the surface then you are at least going to inspect what’s she’s working on and shut down anything dangerous. 

No one answers your first knock and you growl in annoyance before trying again. It’s two in the afternoon which should be work hours. Though you suppose with a boss like Dreemurr the scientist could be at home napping for all you know. At your third try you finally hear a thump from the other side of the door accompanied by a squeak and the sound of claws scrabbling on tile. There’s a pause before the door cracks open revealing just the tip of a yellow snout. 

You can feel frustration bubbling in your throat, did she really not hear you or did she just think you’d go away if ignored?

“U-um, y-yes?” She’s got almost her whole head out of the door at least. 

“Yes. Doctor Alphys was it? I was told that Asgore warned you I would be making an inspection.” 

Her eyes widen and she looks like she’s going to be sick. “T-THAT’S TODAY? I THOUGHT I-IT WAS, - I-I’M SO SORRY.” You don’t even know what to say to that. At least her own poor planning means that she didn’t have had time to hide anything she didn’t want you to see. “U-um I meAN COME IN, I-l’M SORRY FOR THE M-MESS!” 

The mess in question is awful. Something that could have once been a workstation desk looks like it’s been broken in half, with the smashed remains of what was once probably a computer strewn around it. Mixed in with what appears to be multiple piles of empty noodle cups. You don’t even want to ask about the bag of dog food pinned to the wall with a spear. 

You close your eyes and count to ten before scowling at the Doctor. 

She squeaks again, tucking her tail and burying her face in her clawed hands “U-uh wow. I c-can explain, I m-mean t-the food stuff is mine? B-but the captain of the royal guard was staying here for a w-while a-a-a-a-and you s-s-see -”. She freezes her mouth opening and closing like she’s trying to find words, “c-CAN I OFFER YOU A REFRESHMENT IN A DIFFERENT ROOM MAYBE???” You wince at the sudden increase in volume but pause to think. From what you know of the captain of the guard, her living here for even a short amount of time is actually a surprisingly reasonable excuse for this disaster. Your first real introduction to Captain Undyne had been her physically throwing Sans’ brother Papyrus through the roof as they both shouted something about how strong friendship made them. 

“Ah. Very well, I suppose I will help you clean up when we are done.” You could just leave her to do it, but you suppose now that you're acting with some royal authority again the guard is also your responsibility. And the mess makes your pawpads itch. 

The Doctor looks at you through her fingers and you find yourself fighting the urge to soften in response to how terrified she looks. “T-thank you?” 

You nod and readjust the strap of your shoulder bag “I have some questions to ask you before we go through your work, is there uh -” you stare hopelessly at what remains of what you remember to be a bustling professional environment a few hundred years ago “Do you actually have anywhere to sit?” 

Doctor Alphys flushes again and leads you up a set of moving stairs into an area that is honestly only marginally better than where you just left (almost as much of a mess as downstairs except with the addition of what appears to be human shaped dolls with cat ears mixed in with the electronic pieces and wires). She rummages in a desk drawer and you’re handed what appears to be a bottle of some sort of yellow soda. You hold it awkwardly, you can appreciate the gesture even if you’re not sure if you want to drink this. 

There’s still nowhere to sit until The Doctor presses a button on a blue cube that, to your shock, expands into a full queen size bed. “U-Uh, sit here y-your majesty?”

“Did you invent this?” You ask in surprise. You can’t think of another reason why she would have a bed in here and you find yourself reluctantly impressed as you gingerly sit on the edge of it. “Is it a prototype?” 

“O-oh um - it was? They went into production a while a-ago.” She pushes up her glasses and fidgets with her own soda. Before brushing off her desk chair and pulling it up to sit in front of you. 

Well at least she has been useful in some way, though this seems like more of a project for an engineer than the royal scientist? You wonder if Agore just, combined the departments.

One improvement of this floor is that there is somewhat better lighting up here and you notice for the first time that there seems to be an ever present tremor in the royal scientist's hands. Despite your frustrations with the woman you can feel reluctant concern starting to bud, draining away some of your anger. “I see. Well, I believe we should get started, yes?” The list you pull out of your bag is mostly the questions used on a standard review from back before you left, mixed with your own questions both adapted for the situation and ones written down in frustration. You really only need them for yourself since the only higher authority that you'd give an actual written report to is Asgore and you have absolutely no intention of doing that.

“To start off, can you list the projects that you are involved in or running right now?” 

Doctor Alphys blinks and fiddles with her bottle. “Um, d-do you mean p-projects that A-Asgore told me to work on? B-because he wanted the d-determination experiments to be my focus as well as translating and rebuilding,” she looks confused for a second, “t-the previous royal scientist’s work?”

You frown “Is that all? None of that is actually useful to the current progression of the kingdom. What have you and your team been doing the last few months?” Other than hiding from your mistakes and keeping monsters from their loved ones. You bite your tongue. 

She flushes a distinct orange and looks down “O-ok um so, it's just me, Asgore never hired anyone else? A-after the, what happened. I m-mean, I know more people used to work here.” It takes you a second to soak in that bit of idiocy on his part and she rushes on “U-um, and I do have, uh, m-my own projects? That I guess, are maybe actively helpful t-to monsters, I think?”

You take a deep breath and count to ten. “Why? Did he not hire anyone else. Did anyone else work here when you started?" She winces and you take another breath, "I, this is not actually a criticism of you or your work at the moment excuse me. I believe I will ask Asgore some of this myself. Where did you work before? Did he pull you right out of school? And yes please list your own projects.” 

Doctor Alphys fidgets with her soda some more then nervously plucks at a rubber band around her wrist “U-Uh, I, g-guess you could say he, p-pulled me right out of school, t-technically speaking?” That is the most uncomfortable sweaty smile you have ever seen on anyone, and you interact with Sans. “I, don’t think he looked at my school record though? Um, it was more like, I made a robot with a soul? And he was interested.” 

That is actually fairly intriguing, and you are unsure of the implications. “You created a soul? Is this something you’ve tried to replicate?”

The Doctor’s shaking gets bad enough that she has to put her soda on the floor and fold her hands into her lab coat to try and cover it. “I-I,” she pauses, breathing hard, her eyes bright and frightened and you feel a terrible pity start to well in you as she looks you in the eye for the first time since you came here. “Listen I, I-I swear, I don’t want to lie anymore. I-It’s just, this isn’t mine to tell.” 

You sigh, squishing your eyes shut for a moment and then carefully setting your list and pen to the side. “As long as it is not hurting anyone or endangering the kingdom I am willing to keep this private. But I think we have both seen where secrets have lead you, and if it is something that poses a danger to anyone it must be handled now.” 

Alphys stares at you for a second more and then nods and looks away. “I didn’t create a person. What I made is basically a complicated vassal for a pre-existing soul.” You notice that her stutter isn’t as noticeable as before, even as her voice has taken on a strange hollow quality. You’re surprised when she laughs, a high wheezy giggle. “Ms. Toriel, I didn’t even finish high school. When Asgore hired me I was selling beat up electronics in the dump.” She sits up and looks at you again “I don’t know why Asgore wants to keep me on, but I can’t be trusted. Everything that I’ve made here is built on lies.” 

And strangely enough you are feeling more at ease here. The result of this woman’s actions are the same, she caused harm, some of it rests with her and some of it with Asgore. But what you see right now is something you can work with, and something you suddenly find yourself willing to put effort in for more than bashing at Asgore’s sins. 

You take a moment to consider and then, “Doctor. I am willing to work with you to make this a functional operation if you are willing to find me an easy way to micromanage everything that you do here. Keeping in mind that I am now raising a child and resuming some of my old duties as queen.” 

Alphys looks almost grateful, trembling and eyes overbright with tears. “I c-can, liveblog it to you, I t-think.” And then almost as an afterthought, repeated -

“I don’t want to lie anymore.”


	2. Please go to bed.

The rest of the questions go fairly well. The determination experiments and some of the previous royal scientist’s old projects are all Asgore had instructed Doctor Alphys to work on, but on her own Alphys seems to have advanced the technology of the underground in leaps and bounds since you were last a part of it. You find yourself fascinated with the things she’s created, even if you don’t fully understand all of them, and even as your frustration with Asgore simmers. He could have just utilized her in the ways she has really helped. 

You also note that when the doctor is talking about things like jetpack functions or how pockets of anti-space can be compressed into something the size of a phone, she isn’t shaking as much. She continues to stumble over words, excitement frequently interrupted by frustration when it takes her a long time to make it to the next syllable. You don’t interrupt during the pauses, and when she can continue what she has to say is interesting. 

You’re almost disappointed when you run out of questions. “Well I believe that is all, do you have anything else you would wish to discuss or inform me of?” 

Alphys hesitates and then shakes her head “N-not that I ca-can think of? If you give me you-your phone for a minute I-I, can set up a chat?” 

You nod, extracting your old phone from your pocket. You’re not quite sure what ‘a chat’ means in this context, but you assume it’s something like the texting that the scientist had made your phone capable of. As you pass your phone to her you’re confused by the look of horror that comes over her face as she takes it. 

“I, I just realized that I forgot to fully update this!? I’m s-so sorry, this phone is garbage do you mind if I . . . ?” She looks at you, imploring. 

Confused and somewhat amused, you nod. “Feel free.” 

She doesn't waste a second, jumping up and navigating the mess to get to her desk. You watch, fascinated, as she sweeps garbage and bits of machinery to the ground, slaps your phone in the center of the clear space and whips out a chainsaw from seemingly nowhere. What happens after is... something. Involving a lot of chainsaw noises and screeching metal. You’re impressed, back in your day science was much more mundane. 

It takes hardly any time at all before her tools are back from wherever they came from, and a slightly out of breath doctor is handing you back what is, theoretically, your phone. Intrigued, you examine the old little device, almost surprised to find it looking much the same with the major, worrying difference being where it used to have number keys it now just has a new looking panel of plastic. 

You feel yourself start to sweat, “Ah, dear. Thank you but, I’m afraid I don’t know how to use a phone without a keyboard, is it ah, how do I?” 

Flushing orange again Doctor Alphys cautiously reaches for your phone again and presses the panel. With a soft pop it cracks down the middle and unfolds to reveal a much bigger keyboard than the one your phone previously possessed. The new addition has obviously been added with your large fingers in mind, you feel the hot prickle of your own face starting to flush. 

Alphys is still orange and sweaty and appears to be avoiding looking you in the face, carefully, she folds the keyboard back up and then shuffles back to her chair. “Uh-um, when I send you me-messages in the chat they should appear, a-as notifications? You can cl-click those to get to it o-or u-um” a difficult sounding pause and then in a rush, “You can click the app which is the the little yellow U on your home screen!” 

You click the keyboard button again watching it unfold, fascinated. Locating the ‘app’ Alphys is referring to is easy, despite your previous inexperience with a ‘touch screen’. Doctor Alphys helps you set up an account and you’re pleased to find that you do actually have a much easier time with the bigger keys. 

Once you are at least somewhat confident in the mechanics of the app you return to the ground floor with the doctor and spend about half an hour doing an emergency clean. You don’t talk much as you collect papers into neet stacks to be sorted and the doctor frantically shoves empty ramen cups into a garbage bag, but the silence is somewhat more comfortable than you would have expected. You hum as you work and ruminate on where to go from here, you don’t currently know how much longer this building itself will be in use. Many things depend on how talks with the humans go, but you believe it would still be worthwhile to compile and create projected timelines for the doctor’s lists of current projects, confer with her at a later date on new directions to go with the department, and start hiring staff. 

When you leave it’s an amenable parting. With a stuttered thank you from Alphys for your help and parting instructions from you for her to begin compiling a more formal list of her current projects. 

You leave with the feeling that maybe, this could work. 

\-----

You are much, much less sure of that feeling when you find yourself being woken up at 3 am to the sound of frantic pinging from your cellular device. Groaning, you roll over and grab at the infernal thing with your free arm. The other is trapped by the sleeping body of a small messy haired child, who seems completely immune to the sound from where they're drooling into your armpit. Growling lowly you squint at your phone to try and figure out what is wrong with it. 

You're confused by the bars at the top of your screen with bits of text in them until you remember the app that the royal scientist had installed, yesterday? Earlier today? What was the woman doing awake and waking you up right now? 

Another ping starts you out of the thoughts and grumply you tap finally navigate to the little yellow U and tap it and then tap your only contact ‘ALPHYS’

 

ALPHYS: lol its the middle of the night sorry  
ALPHYS: so i think i’ve laid out the stuff i’ve been working on so it makes sense to me? ANYWAY SORRY IF THIS DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE!!!  
ALPHYS: ok soo i already talked to you about some of this stuff but in no particular order   
ALPHYS: 1. undernet compatibility with the human internet  
ALPHYS: 2. monster disease study to try and see if any of it can be transferred to humans weird meat bodies (im getting help with this - we’re just using like, mice and stuff so not sure how accurate any of it is),   
ALPHYS: 3. mouthwash that’s always hot,   
ALPHYS: 4. a few personal robot commissions don’t actually know if i should put this on this list, lol,   
ALPHYS: 5. robotic limb replacements but really they're really just personalized adaptive devices right now not sure how to sync up the magic right for actual fma level stuff, maybe if i could find a less organic building material???  
ALPHYS: 6. bigger storage spaces using anti/void space/ different kinds of portals to it   
ALPHYS: 7. trying to find a way to stabilize the amalgamates some -- SORRY I KNOW I DIDN’T TELL YOU ABOUT THIS ONE WHEN YOU CAME OVER, I’M JUST USING LIKE, LEFTOVER GOOP TRAILS THAT THEir FAMILIES ARE SENDING ME???  
ALPHYS: that might be it?? sorry, let me know what i should like, be doing / / / ?   
ALPHYS: i guess you’ll see this in the morning, sorry to like, spam you, night! <3 =^.^=  
Gastropundya: Doctor.   
ALPHYS: Oh My God Did I Wake You Up  
Gastropundya: Doctor Alphys, I need you to please go to sleep.   
ALPHYS: yES MA’AM RIGHT AWAY MA’AM

 

The small dot next to the doctor’s handle changes almost immediately from green to gray and you groan and roll back over and snuggle closer to your child. You are not entirely sure of what you’re getting yourself into anymore.

**Author's Note:**

> Title from [Cosmo Sheldrake - The Moss](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62RvnXZgHwQ)
> 
> I love these two a lot so if you want to please give feedback about how they came across


End file.
